Clive walks the line as the legendary Johnny Cash

Dawn Renton

Getting the approval of your idol’s family is high praise indeed – just ask Clive John.

He is the only man to win the seal of approval from Johnny Cash’s family with his stage show, the Johnny Cash Roadshow.

“I’m not out to be Cash – I just try and capture the essence of him,” Clive said.

“I’m not really a fan of the word ‘tribute’, I want my show to be much more than that. It’s not just me getting up on stage and singing a few songs and calling it a night.

“I have backing singers as the Carter sisters including Jill Schooljan as June Carter, a full live band against a backdrop of film footage of Cash.”

“I love his voice and his attitude. He’s got such a realness about him and that came across in his music. He was very unique and there has never been anyone else like him nor will there ever be again.”

The show has taken fans by storm across the world since the show began in 2005.

“It’s hard to put into words how great it feels thinking about the show’s success,” Clive continued.

“It’s very satisfying to see how it has grown into what it is today. I’m lucky that I get to do what I love.”

Some 40 songs are covered in a night and Clive likes to make sure his personal favourites are included.

“I must admit, I like playing the ballads,” he said. “My favourite tracks are Missing Someone and Sunday Morning Coming Down”.

But Clive knows there is one song that the crowd want to hear...

“Ring of Fire!,” he laughed. “They wait all night to hear that song! It’s definitely a crowd favourite and they love getting up to dance to it. I love seeing that, it means I’m doing something right!”